


A Darkness - Ending 1: Tragedy

by big_slug



Series: A Darkness [2]
Category: Stranger Things (TV 2016)
Genre: Abusive Lonnie Byers, Alternate Universe, Angst, Child Abuse, Death, Hurt/Comfort, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-02-27
Updated: 2020-02-27
Packaged: 2021-02-27 18:40:21
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 2
Words: 3,032
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22920373
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/big_slug/pseuds/big_slug
Summary: After some backlash over the finale of this Fic, I'm going to split the ending. This is the sad ending.More in the Author's notes.
Relationships: Will Byers/Mike Wheeler
Series: A Darkness [2]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1647358
Comments: 11
Kudos: 16





	1. Chapter 1

_"I’ve spent sixteen chapters reading about a child murderer manipulating and grooming his victim and then hideously taking his life._

_No love, no hope, and no joy. What a colossal waste of time. Chapter after chapter of reading ghastly child abuse followed by betrayal and death._

_You’re a talented writer and can obviously do whatever you please in your stories, but I love fan fiction for the escapism and would never have read something so dark if I knew the ending would be so unsavoury."_ \- bigcrofty

_"So Mike sent a sick boy to be beaten to within an inch of his life, had the boy stagger through the forest to get help from his only friend, and then let him die in front of him._

_But that’s ok because he was nice to him before then, took him to the movies and promised to remember him when he’s gone?_

_I feel nauseous. This chapter ruined your story and is a betrayal of Will and Mike’s characters. Sorry to be so blunt but I genuinely hate it."_ \- YarravilleEmma

I felt like preserving these comments, because I'm moving the final chapter and the epilogue of this fic to a separate work. I'm happy with the way this fic turned out (exactly how I had intended it from the beginning), but I realize that a bunch of wonderful people were very emotionally invested in it. Now, I'm into Major Character Death stuff, so here is the original ending, including epilogue. Judge for yourself. In the next couple of days, I'll upload an alternate ending. And no one will die. Well, maybe Lonnie, I haven't decided yet. In the meantime, I still want you to tell me honestly how you feel about this. And in the unlikely case that you enjoy it, there is a book called 'The Child Thief', by Brom. Gruesome, hopeless, and a re-imagination of Peter Pan. I recommend it.

* * *

„Easy there. Easy. I‘ve got you.“

„You-“ Will‘s knees had given in, and there wasn‘t even enough strength left in him to try and soften the fall - Mike caught him, though, and picked him up. Instinctively, Will threw his arms around his friend‘s neck. „You‘re real?“

„I am real.“ Mike whispered. „I promise I am. I‘ve got you.“ He sat down on the basement couch, allowed Will to sit in his lap.

Will sobbed his relief into Mike‘s shoulder. „Am I dreaming about you again?“

„No. And you‘ve never dreamed about me. Or... maybe you have, I wouldn‘t know, but when you saw me in your room, I was... actually there. It‘s hard to explain. You‘re awake now, that‘s what matters.“

It was all still so very dark around them, and without Mike here, holding him, Will wouldn‘t know where he was. „W-What happened to the house? It‘s so-“

„It‘s old.“ Mike said tonelessly. „It‘s falling apart. No one has lived here for decades, and they might demolish it soon. You just saw what I wanted you to see, Will. Now I don‘t have to deceive you anymore. I‘m...“ His voice broke in a way that left Will‘s heart aching. „I‘m so proud of you. And I‘m sorry. You‘ve suffered so much, and now this-“

Will could feel the wetness of his own blood on his back, but not much else. „It doesn‘t even hurt, Mike. I‘m okay, really. I‘m just so...“

„Weak?“ Mike said. „Tired? You‘re feeling like you‘re slipping away from yourself. Or from the world. Can you hear the echo already?“

„Y-Yes.“ Will sniffed. Mike‘s voice, further away than usual, did echo in his head. „Mike, what‘s happening to me?“

A wave of heat rolled through the basement; It was like opening an oven, being hit with the hot air, unable to breathe for a second or two. When it was over, the lights flickered to life. All these colorful fairy lights Mike had put up. His face, tinged in purple, showed decades, centuries of grief. „You‘re dying, Will.“

Silence settled. Mike‘s hot tears dripped into Will‘s hair. It wasn‘t a lie, Will realized. This was the end. He felt it by the way every second that passed removed him further from his body, and from this world. „I‘m dying...“ he said to himself.

„You have...“ Mike broke off for a few seconds. „You have about two hours left.“

„But why?“ Will asked, trying not to make it sound like an accusation. He just wanted to know. „It‘s you, isn‘t it? You‘re the reason.“

Mike chose his words carefully. „Would you let me tell you a story? It‘s a story I once lived. I‘ve written it down a long time ago, back when I was beginning to forget. You‘ll understand when I‘m done.“

Will said nothing to that. It took Mike a few seconds to pull himself together enough, and when he spoke he was still sometimes interrupted by painful sobs.

„It‘s a story about a boy. And it feels weird telling it, because I know I was him once. But I don‘t remember being him. This was all so, so long ago. He was about your age, maybe a little older when... things happened.. He had parents, at least one sister, maybe more siblings. I‘d already forgotten when I wrote this down. And he had a name, but I‘ve forgotten that too.“

Mike cleared his throat. He held Will more firmly now, closer to himself, and the only reason why Will wouldn‘t close his eyes was, he was afraid he wouldn‘t open them again. That it would be over before Mike could finish his story.

„The boy lived in a village, with his entire family in a house with just one room. It was cold, and dirty, and people just worked from sunrise to sunset. Work was their life. There was nothing else to do but to survive, and for the most part, they didn‘t know or care about the world around them. Until news came from the coast that there had been fighting. Those first battles in Massachusetts, you‘ve probably learned about it in School. And then a man came with a list, and he said any man who wanted to fight the British should just sign. It seemed like an adventure to the boy. He signed his name, thinking they‘d give him a gun. But all he got was a drum.“

In a moment of silence, Mike used two fingers to tap a rhythm on Will‘s shoulder. His gaze seemed to wander off into the distance.

„It‘s odd that I still remember the codes, and nothing else. War is loud, you know. Guns, cannons, screams... The officers would give out orders to the drummers, and the drummers would let the soldiers know. It wasn‘t much easier than life in his village, but at least the boy got a pair of boots and a hat. And meat rations. But people get hurt in the war. A cannonball, a splinter, and then the boy was holding his guts in his hands. That‘s one of the things I‘m glad I don‘t remember.“

Will believed every word. Perhaps it was just his mind slipping away, slipping towards death, but he could see no reason not to believe.

„They didn‘t think he‘d survive. No one would have given him a chance. But the weirdest... No, let‘s say the most horrible thing happened. There were two other boys with him in the tent, one with a broken ankle, the other with a bullet in his shoulder. And while the boy whose bowels had to be pushed back into his body lived, those other two died of a fever. They died, but he lived. A miracle recovery. Do you catch my meaning?“

„I‘m dying...“ Will whispered. „And you‘re going to live.“ It was easy. So easy to accept it.

„I‘m going to live because you‘re dying, Will. I don‘t know what I am. I don‘t...“ Mike momentarily dissolved into a mess of tears and tremors. „I don‘t want to be what I am. I can‘t help it, I‘m killing you. I can‘t save you. I‘m stronger than any human I‘ve ever met. I can make people see and hear things, or make them do things they don‘t want to do. I‘ve got these powers, but when it comes to _dying..._ I tried. I jumped off a house and walked away. I drowned myself and woke up dry on the bank of the river. I shot myself, but the next morning all the bullets were still in their chambers. I can‘t even stop feeding. I tell myself it‘s the last time _every_ time, but the hunger always comes back. And with feeding, there‘s always a next time.“

„Feeding, like you‘re doing now?“

„Yes. Give me your hand.“ Mike took Will‘s hand, laid it flat on his chest, and pressed. Mike‘s heart was beating slowly, too slow for someone as agitated as him. „Feel it?“

„Yes.“ Will said calmly.

„It‘s yours, Will. Your heartbeat. I‘m stealing it, and I can‘t stop.“

Will coughed violently. He was feeling so weak. His limbs wouldn‘t obey him anymore, having gone to sleep, numb and warm. „W-Would you die.. if you didn‘t... feed?“

„People die when I don‘t feed. I‘m a monster. Two or three a year, that‘s all I need. But if I don‘t get that much, I kill... ten... twenty at once, and I can‘t help it. I‘m _murdering_ you, I-“

„Mike...“ Will chided. By now he was seeing everything through a dark veil. „It‘s not... your fault.“ He was finding it hard to speak too, unable to get enough air into his lungs for a full sentence.

„But I chose you, Will. I chose you because-“

„Because... no one... would miss... me.“ It was true, and it didn‘t even bother Will too much. His dad wouldn‘t shed a tear over him. And who else was left? A kid with a loving family, a mother, a father, brothers and sisters, just couldn‘t die. But how many lives would be ruined by Will‘s death?

„I‘m going to miss you.“ Mike squealed. „Please just... tell me you had fun. That I could give you a few good weeks.“

For the last time in his life, Will moved his hands with purpose. He could say it was to comfort Mike, but there was also a very selfish reason to it when he pulled himself up on Mike‘s shoulders and kissed him. His first time ever. He had fantasized about it.

Exhausted, his head rolled back. „M‘sorry...“ he giggled. Will couldn‘t remember ever having felt so good. „I just figured... there won‘t... be... anyone to kiss... where I‘m... going.“

Mike tensed. „There‘s something else I have to tell you. It‘s important, Will.“

„What... is it?“

„I‘ve been to the library, and I‘ve checked some old issues of your local newspaper. Your mom, she... she didn‘t kill herself. She didn‘t. It was a car accident.“

„Accident...“ Will mumbled. He‘d been lied to. All his life, his dad had lied. And Will had never questioned it once. He hadn‘t thought of checking the paper himself.

„She loved you so much. She never meant to leave you alone, but sometimes these things just happen. And you‘re not going to hell. You hear me?“

„M‘not... going... to...“ The echo was now louder than Mike‘s voice itself, but Will could still understand. He wasn‘t _southbound_ , as his dad had liked to call it. No eternal damnation for him. „Then... where... am I... going...?

„I don‘t know, I wish I knew. You‘re going to find out soon. Just don‘t be afraid, okay? You have to be brave one more time. I‘m not going anywhere. And I promise I‘m not going to forget you.“

And even when his vision left him, when the light was gone and everything turned to black, Will knew that Mike wasn‘t lying. His warmth was there when the light went. It was there when the echo was replaced with silence. The feeling of his embrace only left a long time later, the moment when Will took the next step.


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The epilogue. Now I'm off writing the alternate ending for you wonderful people.

„I hope this is a nice place. One you‘d like. I know I do.“ The monster gazed up at the stars above them. He wasn‘t quite ready to let go yet. „I know you probably want to be put with your mom in the end, and don‘t worry, I‘m letting the police know as soon as I‘m out of town. I just need time. Imagine...“

The monster sighed, trying to blink tears away, but they just kept on coming. Next to him a pale body that once belonged to one of the most beautiful souls he had ever met, surrounding him the walls of a hole he had dug on a little clearing in the woods around Hawkins. „Imagine someone coming by right now. Maybe I‘d ask them to fill up the hole. Just stay here with you. I‘d like that very much. B-But it‘s time for me to go now, Will. I promise I‘ll let them know where you are.“

The creature finally detached himself from the body. He took one last look at the blue skin and that peaceful expression on Will‘s face. It was wrong. It was so, _so_ wrong. Out of the two of them, who deserved to live more? And who was still standing, still alive after centuries of murder? The monster draped the blanket around the boy and jumped out of the hole. A pile of earth, a spade, and the hole filled up.

But as he worked, it overcame him again. That rage he felt, that hate for what he was, what he‘d done hundreds of times. His sleeves were red with Will‘s blood, from when he had held the boy, and carried him here. There shouldn‘t be any blood. And there shouldn‘t be a hole, and no body in the ground.

‚ _Don‘t do anything stupid now.‘_ the voice in his head sprang to life. _‚Do you want to waste another one, you monster?‘_ The switchblade knife twitched in his pocket. How easy it would be to try again. To ram the blade deep into his own body, pull out the vile innards. And yet, he would be bound for certain failure. It would just make him hungry again.

He had carved a small cross into a stone with his fingernails. Every night, for a month, so the pain would remind him of what was to happen, telling him not to get too attached. But the monster always got attached. And now that the injustice of it all came rolling through the woods like a tsunami, he growled like the animal he was. The monster knew who was to blame.

The man was dressed in a bathrobe, dirty-gray, draped over pale blue boxer shorts and a stained undershirt. His scent was revolting, but the monster forced a smile. „The hell do you want? It‘s four in the morning.“ Byers drunkenly snarled.

„Hi. Mister... Byers, is it? I‘m Mike Wheeler, and I just wanted to pick some of Will‘s stuff up for him.“

Lonnie Byers‘ hand, wrapped in a bandage from wrist to elbow, made a dismissive gesture. „You can tell that little fag I‘m burning his shit first thing this morning. Now get off my property.“

„I‘m going to pick up some stuff for him.“ the creature said.

Byers would have none of it. His face darkened, obviously as though to say _‚Haven‘t I been through enough already.‘_ , and he turned around. „Getting my shotgun, kid. You‘d better run, or you‘re gonna regret-“

His threat went unfinished, because the monster made a leap for him. No reason to give Byers a fighting chance. Two strikes with the knife, two loudcracks later, he was lying on the floor in the hall. His face showed surprise, pain, panic, all at once.

And now the monster grinned for real. How easy it was to immobilize an unsuspecting bastard. „Oh it‘s been a while since I‘ve heard an Achilles‘ heel snap. Your son is dead, Byers.“ Tears were threatening to spill over again, but the monster channeled them into rage, and into hate. „I chose him because you didn‘t love him enough. Is that fair?“

Lonnie Byers coughed, trying to inch away from the monster closing in. He didn‘t say a word, maybe out of fear, maybe out of spite.

„Is that fair?“ the monster screamed. He had backed the man into a wall. „It‘s not. I haven‘t killed anyone with my bare hands in fifty years. But this is going to be fun.“

* * *

Sunny California. Too many dark months lay behind him. And he enjoyed the sun, the way the heat seeped through his shirt and into his icy skin. The monster stood there, taking it all in. The noise, the people, the smells. He had been to the beach yesterday, had closed his eyes, lying in the sand, getting himself a nice sunburn. The new kid, having just moved here from the east coast, needs his skin to be red and flaking, after all. When he felt for his chest, almost no heartbeat was left. Will‘s long goodbye, now fading from the monster‘s body.

The bell rang, loud and shrill, and a mere ten seconds later, kids swept out of the school. Summer break cheers, discarded textbooks, quarters rattling in their pockets. And in the middle of the wave, not smiling but looking annoyed, the girl. She was reaching into her pocket just now, pulled out a pack of cigarettes.

And the monster thought _‚If only her lighter would fail.‘_

No matter how hard she tried, she couldn‘t make a flame. „Shit...“ she cursed lowly. „Fucking shit!“

But the monster was there, his smile looked sincere, and his lighter did work. „Here, let me just-“ The girl stared as he lit her cigarette, and one for himself.

„T-Thanks.“ she said.

„Ah, no problem.“ the monster replied. Slow. Careful. It was already enough for today. „Guess I‘ll see you around.“

„Uh, sure.“ the girl jumped on her skateboard, her red hair flying behind her like a flame in the wind. As he watched her take off, the smile fell from the monster‘s face. At least he already knew how to skate.


End file.
